Automatic Transformer Test Report Generation Tool

Abstract

Transformer testing is a pivotal step in insuring safety, reliability and efficiency of power industries. Ordinarily, engineers relay on manual calculations, spread sheet and heavy formatting on word processing software’s like MS. Office which is manual and error prone, which can lead to human error and easily exposed to manipulation. This paper presents a software solution for automatic transformer test data processing and reporting as per NABL and BIS standards. Software allows engineer to enter raw measurement data for winding resistance, ratio, no-load loss, load loss, temperature rise, impedance, tan delta, insulation resistance, magnetic balance, harmonics, noise, and zero-phase-sequence (ZPS) and more such tests, results are automatically formatted into standardized test report, eliminates the extensive manual calculations and formatting. Which tends to reduction in processing time, calculation errors, and higher consistency and transparency of test reports. It enhances the productivity of transformer industries and laboratories.

Introduction

Testing is essential in the transformer industry to ensure safety, reliability, and compliance with standards such as NABL and BIS. Traditional transformer testing relies heavily on spreadsheets, manual calculations, and manual formatting, which increases the likelihood of errors, slows down the workflow, and leaves results vulnerable to manipulation. Common transformer tests include winding resistance, ratio, load and no-load losses, impedance, insulation resistance, tan delta, temperature rise, harmonics, and more.

To address problems with manual reporting, the paper introduces a LabVIEW-based automated software system that performs calculations, ensures data integrity, standardizes reporting, and complies with industrial requirements. Key features include automatic calculations for every test, NABL/BIS-compliant report formats, error-free locked algorithms, guided data entry, and significant productivity improvements.

The literature review highlights that although international standards such as IEC 60076 and IEEE C57 describe testing procedures, they do not provide frameworks for data handling or standardized reporting. Most laboratories still depend on manual spreadsheets, which are prone to formula errors, inconsistent formatting, and lack of result security. Semi-automated tools (VBA scripts, macros) reduce some manual work but lack scalability, while commercial automated test benches are expensive and inflexible. This creates a need for an affordable, standardized, and customizable solution.

The proposed system uses modular architecture, unique sample ID management, locked algorithms to prevent data manipulation, and an intuitive GUI with real-time validation. It supports more than 21 transformer tests and automatically adjusts calculation logic for different transformer types (single-phase, three-phase, solar, inverter, dry-type, etc.). Reports are generated in PDF or DOC formats, fully aligned with NABL and BIS standards.

Evaluation shows substantial improvements in efficiency, accuracy, and report consistency. Manual testing typically required about 25 minutes per test, whereas the automated software reduced this to 12 minutes—achieving approximately 52% time savings. Error rates in manual calculations (3–4.5%) were eliminated, and report formatting became instant and uniform. For example, a 250 kVA distribution transformer test that took 1 hour 24 minutes manually was completed in under 8 minutes using the automated system, with zero calculation errors.

Conclusion

The paper presents implementation and development of LabVIEW based automatic transformer report generation software designed to replace the traditional ways of testing industries. System provides structured and step by step procedure of covering almost all the transformer testing perimeters and report generation. By integrating the standardized calculation and algorithms according to IS and BIS/NABL, report formation becomes more consistent and credible, calculation accuracy, data integrity, and testing time overall procedure improved significantly, additionally having modular architecture allow to incorporate and adopt all the future improvements. In future work, several enhancements are planned to future extend the system capabilities, including: 1) Integration with instruments and sensors for automatic data acquisition. 2) Cloud based data storage and centralized report access from all the devices. 3) AI assistant that can guide to new testing engineers for testing procedure. 4) Advanced user access control and digital signatures

References

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Copyright

Copyright © 2025 Nikhil S Dave, Vaishnavi P Thakkar, Manav Varia, Zeel Panchal. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.